Boot and the like



Feb. 12, 1952 J. MCGARRY BOOT 'AND THE LIKE 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Filed Nov. 17, 1949 Feb. 12, 1952 J. MCGARRY 2,585,260

BOOT AND THE LIKE Filed Nov. 17, 1949 2 SHEETSSHEET 2 Ja s 2770a LE0 J-ZZYJEEEE Patented Feb. 12, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT .BODTLAND THE LIKE Leo J:McGai-ry watertown, Mass., assignor to The' Bi F; Goodr ichfiompany',.lNew york, N. 11, amorporationjiof New York Application N ove'mbe'f17, 19519, Serial N 0,; 127; 831

It is an object of this invention to provide an article of footwear which "has an" increased resistance to frictional forces exerted on the heel portions of the article.

It is also an object of this invention to provide an article of footwear'which may beeasily'pul'len -In the drawings: on or removed from the foot. Fig. 1 is a side elevation partlybroken away Another object of this invention is to-provide andin-section'of a boot embody-ingthis invenan article of footwear whose innermostvertical tion; surface is seamless at the'extreme rear-heel por- Fig. 2 is asectionon-thel-ine 2-2 of'Fig. 1; tions. i l Fig.3 i-s-a section on the line 3'3 of'F-ig'. 1*; and

.A further object'of this invention is to: provide 'Fig. 4 is a section on-the line 44' of *Fig. 1. an article of footwear'which is comfortable -when A boot made in accordance with my invention worn on the foot. as shown in Fig. 1 comprises a flexible upper Other objects of this invention will be'apmemberfllll which generallyextends up to the parent from the drawings ,and' description which knee of the wearer covering the calf of the leg, 0W-

aistifi-foot-enclosing shell ll, andan outsole l2. One conventional type of boot-or overshoe'com- Theupper 10 consists of a'fabric lining 13 prises a flexible upper which 'extends'upw -r y which is prefer-ably a knitted fabric; such as light from the instep level on thefoot, and a relatively net;-coatedwith rubber-like. material on its outer stiff foot-enclosingshellextending from thesolc face bya-calender-ing process. Opposingmargin's to the bottom margin ofthe upper andioi-nedto l4 and I5 ofthe upper l=0 are cemented together the latter y a -I D-" am e e al y forming a 'lap' seam :down the front" of the-. boot parallel to the sole; The two'vertical-margins-of as shown in Fig. 11 to provide a. limp, .fiexible le the shell are joined to each other at the extreme enclosing; uppermember. .iThe heel portion 46 rear heel portion of the boot onovershoe forming of; u per. l 1):. extends a shor.t. distance, preferably a vertical seam. This constructionszhasxibeen' Q, from to.. /z.inch,:nnder:the insole Iii. adopted because it..permits boots to be-made with- Thefooteenclosingshell ;l I constructed pre out the necessity of providing. a last: for? the erably of. a1: knitted .rfabric, such as heavy snet, upper: the foot-enclosinglshell is lasteolandithe coated with a rubber-like materialand is of upper is merely draped aroundthe .shanlrof the sufiicient stiffnessto maintain the desired shape last, depending from; the-c edge; of;;:the: shell-to 5 without, additional .SllppQrt. The-rubbermaterial which it is ecur -by lap amorthe: shell preferably is thicker than that of Although this. expedient resultsQina greatlysrethe; upper.- For..-examn1 t may b a th k e duced cost of construction. because. .tnemecessity 011.032 4 h ishell as ompar with a h kn ss for a. full lastfor the upper isieliminated; is. of ;.-0-18":.-;in the npper..,..As. shown i;n. Fig. 1, the subjectto certain disadvantages. .zAs: the .shoe shell I1. is lap seamed to theupper Ill along a or boot is pulled .on or removed from. the footiof hqrizontagl-zoneiextending forwardly. from .bethe wearer, frictional forcesare exerted; .onv the neath the-ankle -on.-,. eac h side of the footand isv horizontal and vertical seams in the-heel portion lasted pnder;the-.;in sole I] a short distance, prefwhich tend to destroy the seams. The horizontal. erablyJ g finch-along its bottom. margin. and vertical seams occurring at .theextremerrear .i Theevertical -..r.ea.rmargins: 18 of the -;shel l' l lzlare heel portion of the-shoe or boot-are ldisadvantalap seamed to upper ll] forming ygrtica1 j r c t ree. eous in that they P vide an uneven surface at the quarter portions of the boot eliminating a which rubs against the 'heelof the-wearersshoe, horizontal .seam-v at the. rear gheel portion of the the uneven surface causing excessive wear. 50 boot.

I have found that the-various disadvantages in? herent in such a construction; .as :pointedmut above, "may be eliminated by omittingfithe rear portion of the foot-enclosingshell and-extending the upper downward-1y to the sole portion of- =the=footwear toprovide a seamless heel portion.

For a-clearer understanding of this invention, specific reference will be madehenceforth to a boot,-"however, itwillbe-understood that I- contemplate the use of this invention in other articlesof footwear in whichmuch the-same problems arise such as'galoshes, overshoes, and the like.

foxingzstrip 28 of' :rub;berv;like material :whose upper margin isw'adhered over the bottom margin ofxtheupper it]; extends overthehorizontal seam formed :byr-the. juncture: .of .therupper margin of shell -11lzandzthe;bottommarginnfthe impair-alt and is secured along its bottom margin to shell I l.

The heel counter 2| oi rubber-like material provided with a woven fabric reinforcing layer is adhered along its upper margin to the outer surface of upper ID and extends downwardly over the heel portion of the upper l and the rear portions of foxing strip 20 and is adhered along its bottom margin to outsole I2.

A toe cap 22 of rubber-like material provided with a woven fabric reinforcing layer is adhered over the outer face of the toe portion of shell II and provides reinforcement and strength to this portion of the boot.

To construct the boot the upper ill, the shell I I, the foxing strip 20, and the heel counter 2| are cut to the desired contours from flexible rubberlike sheets reinforced with fabric material. An insole I1 is placed on a last 23; the shell II is lasted over it; and the heel portion of the upper 10 is lasted over the insole, the opposing margins M and of upper [0 having been previously lap seamed to each other. The bottom margin 25 of upper I0 is lap seamed over the upper margin 26 of shell H and the vertical margins 18 of the shell II are lap seamed over margins 21 of the upper Ill. The bottom margin 28 of the heel portion I6 of the upper I0 is lasted to insole H.

The foxing strip 20 is placed over the horizontal lap seam formed by the juncture of the bottom margin 25 of the upper l0 and the upper margin 26 of the shell II. The heel counter 21 is lasted over the heel portion l6 of upper l0 and the rear portions of the foxing strip 20. The toe cap 22 is drawn and shaped over the toe portion of the shell II. The outsole I2 is then applied, and the assembly is vulcanized to produce an integral unit.

By means of this invention it is possible to build a boot without using a full last for the upper, thus reducing greatly the cost of the last, and at the same time avoiding the disadvantages inherent in the constructions previously made on such a last. There is provided a boot with a limp, highly flexible leg-enclosing upper extending upwardly from about ankle level, together with a relatively stiff, form-retaining foot-enclosing shell extending from the upper to the sole around the fore part of the boot, so that the heel portion is free from seams, the upper being lasted to the sole in the heel portion from quarter to quarter. Elimination of seams in this zone prevents breakdown of the boot during use.

The elimination of the aforementioned horizontal and vertical seams at the extreme rear heel portion of the boot or shoe provides a smooth uninterrupted vertical surface at the heel portion of the article facilitating insertion or removal-of the foot from the article. The uninterrupted surface at the heel portion of the article offers an additional advantage, in that there are no uneven surfaces to chafe the foot or shoe over which the article of footwear is worn.

It is clear that obvious modifications and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

- I claim:

1. An article of footwear comprising a sole member, a flexible upper member extending above ankle level and extending around the fore part of said article with its forward lower margin at about mid-instep level, said upper member being secured to said sole member only along a zone extending rearwardly from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of said article, and

a form-retaining shell extending around the fore part of said article from the level of the sole to about mid-instep level, said shell having two generally parallel margins and being secured to said sole member along one of said margins and secured along the other of said margins to the lower margin of said upper member.

2. An article of footwear comprising a sole member, a flexible upper member extending above ankle level and extending forwardly around the fore part of said article with its forward lower margin at about mid-instep level, said upper member being secured to said sole member only along a zone extending rearwardly from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of said article and said upper member having a seamless vertical innermost surface along the extreme rear heel portion of said article, a form-retaining shell extending around the fore part of said article from the level of the sole to about mid-instep level, said shell having two generally parallel margins and being secured to said sole member along one of said margins and secured along the other of said margins to the lower margin of said upper member, and a reinforcing counter overlying the outer face of said shell and upperv member around the heel of said article rearwardly of the shank of said sole member.

3. An article of footwear comprising a sole member, a flexible upper member extending at treme rear heel portion of said article, a footenclosing shell extending around the fore part of said article secured along its bottom margin to said sole member from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of said article and along its top'margin to the lower margin of said upper member at a seam generally parallel to said sole member, and secured to said upper member along a zone generally normal to saidsole member at substantially each heel breast portion, and a foxing overlying said seam formed by the juncture of the said top margin of said shell with the said lower margin of said upper.

member, said foxing being secured along its upper margin to said upper member and along its bot-- tom margin to said shell.

4. An article of footwear comprising a sole member, a, flexible upper member extending above ankle level and extending forwardly around the fore part of said article with its forward lower margin at about mid-instep level, said upper "member being secured to said sole member around the margin of the heel rearwardly from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of the article and said upper member having a seamless vertical innermost surface along the extreme rear heel portion of said article, a relatively stiff form-retaining foot-enclosing shell' extending from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of the article forwardly around the fore part of said article from the level of the said sole to about mid-instep level, said shell being secured along its bottom margin to said sole from substantially the heel breast portion of each side of said article and along its top margin to the lower margin of said upper member at a zone generally parallel to said sole member and secured to said upper along a zone generally normal to said sole member at substantially each heel breast portion, a foxing overlying the seam formed by the juncture of the said top margin of said shell with the said lower margin of said upper member, said foxing being secured along its upper margin to said upper member and along its bottom margin to said shell, and a reinforcing counter overlying the outer face of said article around the heel thereof rearwardly of the shank of said sole member.

5. An article of footwear comprising a sole member, a flexible upper member extending at least to mid-calf height and extending forwardly around the fore part of said article with its lower a margin at about instep level, said upper member being secured to said sole member around the margins of the heel rearwardly from substantially each heel breast portion of said article, a

foot-enclosing form-retaining shell extending around the fore part of said article from the level of the sole to about instep level and secured along its bottom margin to said sole member from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of said article, secured along its top margin to the 6 0 member, a flexible upper member extending at least to mid-calf height and extending forwardly around the fore part of said article with its forward lower margin at about instep level, said upper having a seamless vertical innermost surface along the extreme rear heel portion of said article and being secured to said sole member around the margins of the heel rearwardly from substantially each heel breast portion of said article, a foot-enclosing relatively stiff formretaining shell extending around the fore part of said article from the level of the sole to about instep level and secured along its bottom margin to said sole member from substantially the heel breast portion on each side of said article, secured along its top margin to the innermost surface of the lower margin of said upper member at a seam generally parallel to said sole member, and secured along the innermost surfaces of its rear margins to the outer surfaces of said upper member, said last-mentioned margins extending generally normal to said sole member at substantially each heel breast portion of said article.

LEO J. MCGARRY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date Re. 8,128 Stockbridge Mar. 19, 1878 1,924,716 Ferrettie Aug. 29, 1933 2,433,228 LHollier Dec. 23, 1947 

